The woman who spent a month in jail for publishing an undercover police officer's address was arrested March 27 for allegedly violating a court order.

"I have no idea what I did," say Bedford resident Elisha Strom. "They couldn't even tell me what I did. This is ridiculous."

Last year, Strom captured some ire from the Jefferson Area Drug Enforcement task force as well as some help from the American Civil Liberties Union with her I HeArTE JADE blog. She was arrested July 16 under an obscure state statute that the ACLU calls unconstitutional.

That law, which forbids publication of law-enforcement officers' addresses or photos with intent to harass–- even if the addresses came from government websites. For instance, Charlottesville and Albemarle publish citizens' real estate records, but cops who can prove such online information is a threat can now petition the court to have their address removed– thanks to a new law from Delegate Rob Bell.

In exchange for a plea agreement that reduced the Class 6 felony to a misdemeanor obstruction of justice charge, Strom agreed in October to stay away from JADE offices, officers, their homes, and Virginia State Police Special Agent Jason Trent, who investigated the case. She has a six-month suspended sentence in Albemarle, and a 60-day suspended sentence for obstruction of justice in Charlottesville.

The recent arrest involved a single officer showing up to arrest her with a warrant that did not specify how she violated the court order, says Strom. A document on file at the courthouse, however, claims that Strom followed JADE officers on March 23 from a point near their Charlottesville offices into Albemarle County in her green Toyota. But Strom scoffs at the claim.

"I'm not going to do something that sends me to jail," she says. "That's stupid. And I'm not stupid."

Adds Strom, "It's really interesting that I'm finding out what I did from a reporter."

Commonwealth's Attorney Denise Lunsford, who requested the authorization for the arrest, declined to specify whom Strom allegedly followed. "That will be presented in court," says Lunsford.

If a judge finds that Strom violated the terms of the plea, will she serve the suspended sentences? "It's really up to the judge," says Lunsford.

Strom, who acknowledges she was present at the Albemarle courthouse in Charlottesville during the morning in question, sounds a defiant tone.

"There's no description, no time, no officer," she says. "They're going to wait and see what I say about it and conform their story to that."

Strom also continues to write on I HeArTE JADE, and on March 23 posted a photograph of an unidentified man, along with an email purporting to be from an unidentified police officer that says, "If you wanted pics of my car, you could have just asked! No need to sneak around behind me...I would be happy to allow you to take pictures of my car for all to see. Have a safe day."

Strom says there's one consolation in that the most recent arrest was more civil than last July's, when she estimates approximately 10 officers stormed her residence. This time, she was released on a $2,000 unsecured bond.

"After jail, I went to the movies," she says. Her next court appearance is April 20.

73 comments

its so sad that they ran out of dealers to arrest so they had to pick on her again.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 5th, 2010 | 6:11pm

pg2112, let me correct your statement...

"Good" cops HAVE to cover for bad cops.

If they don't, their career is in jeopardy. When a good cop speaks up and exposes corruption, wrongdoings or conspiracies in the department he/she works for, they are history. I know I repeat myself a lot here, but once again, former Albemarle County police officer Karl Monsoor is the best local example of this.

I HeArTE JADE, I will tell you the same thing I tell everybody else I know. People need to carry pocket recorders with them nowadays. Or even better, video and audio in their vehicles if they want to spend the money. And preferably video that records out the rear of the vehicle and in the front. Once an officer testifies in court, and a video shows something totally different, they are history. I'll address this issue more next month. :)

Then you ought to pay more attention before trying to be clever. GSOE and my opinions regarding Law Enforcement are completely contrary to each other. I mean, he wants officers to, by law if necessary, have special treatment -- something he would benefit from; I want none of these designer laws for the police -- something everybody would benefit from.

People here don’t seem to get that, though he’s not patrolling the streets anymore, GSOE is still a cop through and through.

Quote GSOE This abuse and misuse of the stalking laws is why perfectly legitimate cases of stalking are often tossed out by judges.

Pfft! Forget abuse and misuse, most people have no freakin' idea what stalking even is. The amount of legitimate cases of it, I believe, are few and far between. In order for conduct to be considered stalking, there must be a legitimate threat of bodily injury, criminal sexual assault, or death.

Your ex chasing you around for months while videotaping you? Not stalking. A stranger commenting on your Facebook page day after day? Not stalking. A homeless guy on the Downtown Mall trailing you to your car while begging for change? Even if he does it to you 25 times? Not stalking. I've mentioned how hot I think a certain JADE Detective is but nothing suggests I'm going to rape him, so my following him and taking pictures of him? Not stalking.

If a woman accused a man of being a rapist because he merely touched her hand, or opened a door for her, everyone would think the woman was loopy. Yet these same folks don't think twice about labeling equally innocent people stalkers.

You, GSOE, have a thing about Law Enforcement; I have a thing about the uninformed public. I'd way rather there be five corrupt officers than one ignorant citizen.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 11th, 2010 | 9:00am

I would feel comfortable in taking a wild guess that whatever you said involved some type of libelous remark(s) against somebody.

guilty consciences? April 3rd, 2010 | 8:40pm

Deleted by moderator.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 3rd, 2010 | 7:43pm

Deleted by moderator.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 5th, 2010 | 8:28am

COPS EX, this is exactly why the actual residence address of any law enforcement officer should be exempt from being posted on the online real estate portions of city and county tax records.

You would think that at least one police chief or sheriff somewhere in the State of Virginia would have thought about this many years ago and dealt with the problem before now.

I will not defend any person who posts a cop's home address online, but who really dropped the ball here? If a city or county posts the address and images of a cop's house, aren't they just as guilty as Strom?

Renee April 2nd, 2010 | 9:13pm

Gasbag, do you have your own website? I'd love to read/hear your full story sometime. I've picked up bits and pieces here and there, but I'd definitely buy the book.

passed ur bedtime April 3rd, 2010 | 9:45pm

deleted by moderator.

Reality Check April 3rd, 2010 | 11:24am

Gasbag-- do you not see any difference between your case and Strom's? She was actually following people, photographing them, and then publishing the photos on her blog without their permission. She fully admits this.

What if I did likewise and started driving all the way from Bedford into Cville every day to follow Dave Norris, Lee Catlin, Gary O'Connell and Denise Lunsford around? What if I took photos of them shopping, going in and out of their houses, and driving on the roads? And then I kept doing it even after I was asked to stop? I'm sorry, but that's obsessive stalker behavior, and people (regular Joes on the street and gov't officials) would probably have a very bad opinion of me. The people in question above would be well within their rights to wonder if my obsessiveness and inability to control myself meant that I was mentally unhinged and might pose a potential danger. If I were one of the people above, I might consider popping a cap in my stalker's ass.

Just because you were falsely accused of doing something, doesn't mean you should automatically empathize with someone who has gleefully admitted doing the same things and published evidence of it on their website. You're comparing apples and oranges.

Quote Reality Check If I were one of the people above, I might consider popping a cap in my stalker’s ass.

If I wrote anything remotely similar to what you just wrote, it would immediately be labeled a threat. Be happy you are free to make such threats; some of us get arrested even when we don’t make them.

Quote Reality Check You’re comparing apples and oranges.

And you’re hyperbolic and uninformed.

But ignoring that your overblown assessment of the situation is incorrect in many aspects, you appear to make a good argument. What you do not seem to be considering, though, is that nowhere in your scenario has a crime been committed. You are legally permitted to indefinitely follow and photograph all those people and others. They and others are legally permitted to indefinitely think what they want about you. Yet you ultimately propose death for these commissions of non-crimes. Talk about being mentally unhinged!

Quote GSOE This case actually shows another major problem that exists in the arrest and trial procedure. A person is arrested for violating a court order, and bonded. Not knowing what portion of the court order they violated, they could go out and do it again while on bond. Then they will get picked up and held WITHOUT bond.

I have less of an issue with not knowing the specifics of what I allegedly did than with the fact that the identities of my accusers in this case have been concealed. That makes them literally the Secret Police! Worse, that probably means nothing to the average American. Then again, what can one expect from average Americans? While they’ve been blubbering about healthcare reform, the Patriot Act, even further devoid of the protections we the people used to be guaranteed, was quietly approved for another year.

pg2112 April 5th, 2010 | 4:59pm

Elisha already knows what I learned the hard way.

There is no such thing as a good cop. "Good" cops cover for bad cops, and that makes them all bad. No exceptions.

If she can keep pressure on JADE, there might just be a few less bad things these evil do. I don't care what her motivation is, she has my support.

Oh, and ES? Thanks for the invite. ;) Keep it up!

pg2112 April 5th, 2010 | 8:10pm

GSOE:

You accept corruption as a cost of doing business. BAD COP!

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 4th, 2010 | 10:37am

Caesonia, I am sorry you were stalked and attacked.

But the problem is that many judges know that the stalking laws have been misused and abused by both civilians and cops for the last 20+ years. This abuse and misuse of the stalking laws is why perfectly legitimate cases of stalking are often tossed out by judges. They are between the rock and a hard spot in hearing stalking cases and ruling in such a manner as to satisfy both the accusers and the defendants.

COPS EX April 5th, 2010 | 6:37am

Being the ex of a cop, I have an experience to share, and this is why you dont take pics of them or where they live, illegal or not.. you put the whole family of the officer in jeopardy when you do, This is JADE, Jefferson area Drug Enforcement,, key word.. DRUG! .. Need I say MORE????? We had to move our family because we lived around the corner from one of the biggest drug trafficing areas.. My ex arrested a drug addict, and was threatened, things started happening at our house in the middle of the night while he was working,it scared the hell outta me. We had 3 young ones in the house, this jerk knew where we lived. Needless to say we HAD TO MOVE. SO PLEASE STOP posting pictures and addresses of officers.. you may just be responsible for something happening to them and their family.

Ashley April 4th, 2010 | 1:15am

Gasbag, why are you airing your own dirty laundry? There is little to no comparison to the two incidents. Apples and oranges is correct. You say that you empathize with all defendants, yet if you were still a sworn deputy sheriff, wouldn't you still be on her list to harass and stalk? Would you still be defending her then?

Strom, you say you are not doing anything illegal, but what is your fascination with walking to the edge of that fine line, sticking your little toe over it, taunting and laughing, and running away? What is your purpose? This seems such a waste of life.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 3rd, 2010 | 12:54pm

Yes Reality check, I agree, apples and oranges.

But after being a sworn deputy sheriff for decades, and seeing what a small group of loose cannons attempted to do to me, I empathize with all defendants nowadays. Because I know firsthand if these defendants do have the funds to defend themselves, and sue the cop later for false arrests, they go to jail.

Had Strom had the money back during the first arrest to take it to the highest court in the land, I doubt we would be where we are now. It will be interesting to see what the case is all about this time when it gets to court.

This case actually shows another major problem that exists in the arrest and trial procedure. A person is arrested for violating a court order, and bonded. Not knowing what portion of the court order they violated, they could go out and do it again while on bond. Then they will get picked up and held WITHOUT bond.

log April 5th, 2010 | 7:46pm

In the future we'll all have privacy for 15 minutes.

fred April 3rd, 2010 | 5:58am

I don't blame her at all, somebody needs to put pigs in their place. I had one completly lie in court just to give me a ticket for doing nothing. Cops need to be policed harder in this town.

Caesonia April 4th, 2010 | 9:41am

Brady -

Gee, you must be a conservative, as you obviously support the abuse of authority, and claim anyone who might question the appropriate use of authority is a liberal.

I will remind you that the two primary reasons the US revolution occurred was because of taxation WITHOUT REPRESENTATION, and ABUSE OF AUTHORITY.

So I guess they were liberals. You might want to think about that next time.

Personally, I don't know what happened with Strom, but I do know that when I was stalked the court didn't want to do much about it until I was actually attacked. I don't see why police officers should get special treatment in that regard.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 11th, 2010 | 4:06pm

No. It seems like my comments only get deleted when I quote libelous remarks made by other people. I guess if they need to remove the libel, they have to remove it when I quote the words too. Makes perfectly good sense to me.

paranoiastrksdp April 6th, 2010 | 4:51pm

If they force her to take her blog down, I will archive it on multiple offshore servers.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 10th, 2010 | 9:34am

I think that perhaps Ivy should worry about finding a spouse instead of worrying about finding one for other people. Combined with the fact I can't get rid of my current wife, she makes a lot of money and buys me nice toys. :)

Matt April 8th, 2010 | 1:45pm

Don't misunderstand, Gasbag, I know the state doesn't presume innocence. Heck, as pro/persecutors I expect them to presume guilt. What I'm concerned about is 1 to 12 of their knee-jerk supporters landing on the jury that tries my case, should my fortune turn sour enough to be target by the "Only Ones"*, as David Codrea calls them.

If I ever face a court I want a jury full of people who understand what "beyond the shadow of a reasonable doubt" used to mean.

* Google the phrase and name if you don't know.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 8th, 2010 | 1:36pm

Matt, I'm sorry, but there is no longer a presumption of innocence. It's backwards nowadays. You are guilty until proven innocent. Take a look at the people who have sat in jail for 15 to 25 years before this newfangled DNA testing cleared them.

Sure these people were proven guilty. With forged confessions, forced confessions, planted evidence, etc... and they were guilty until proven innocent.

Many years ago the criminal justice system felt it was better to see 10 guilty men go free rather than incarcerate one innocent person. That too is totally backwards now, lock up all 11 and call them all guilty.

Quote GSOE I believe they are leading you on and then stabbing you in the back.

I don’t understand what you mean. Leading me on -- how so? For what purpose? And what is your definition of backstabbing?

Ohmigosh”Š I just thought of something! Maybe one or even both of the ACPD officers who waved at me the other day are now posting here under the username Ã¢â?¬Å?the other question.” I think that would be, like, hilarious! In fact, Ã¢â?¬Å?very” uneducated me is going to believe that exact thing just because of how funny I find it.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 3rd, 2010 | 10:20am

Ashley, I would be interested in knowing why you feel Strom is a danger and threat to cops and their families?

The real danger to cops and their families is city and county governments posting their addresses and images of their homes in the "online" real estate taxes. And it's funny how no cop whined or complained about it until Strom re-posted the same information that was available to anybody in the online real estate pages.

I don't know Strom, never met her in my life. But I do feel the law(s) were used and abused in her first arrest. And I suspect they are being used and abused again.

Let me tell you how stalking laws are presented in court when a "cop" is allegedly the victim. They document you going up Pantops Mountain to get Amoco gas. You pass a certain cop in traffic, so you must be stalking him. You're taking your daughter to McDonalds, at her request. A certain cop is in the immediate area. So you must be stalking him. You're at the scene of a DUI arrest when a certain cop shows up. You must be stalking the cop even though you have stopped the DUI driver and requested their assistance. (The judge had a hard time hiding his laughter on the DUI testimony) They document your being in the Pantops Mountain shopping center passing a cop. You must be stalking the cop in order to pass him in traffic in a shopping center. They solicit another county employee to draft a witness "statement", six months after the fact, this witness "statement" stating you sure did pass this cop in the Pantops Mountain shopping center. This same person testifies in court that the license plates on your car were so and so. But the same license plates WERE NOT on your car 6 months before she drafted her ""statement" and observed you in the Pantops Moutain shopping center. You go to an Albemarle County Board of Supervisors meeting with your attorney. A certain cop might or might not be in the same building at the time. They claim you were in the county office building to stalk this certain cop, without their even knowing if this certain cop was in the building or not. The list goes on and on, yet not one single inch of video tape exists! The judge was just as amused as everybody else in the courtroom was. It was more entertaining than the Barney & Bailey Circus. And I don't doubt for one second that the judge was well aware that dozens of lies were told in his own courtroom that day. When retiring to chambers at the conclusion of the stalking trial, the judge told his baliff that he simply couldn't believe an entire chain of command had just committed perjury in his courtroom.

A lot of strange things happened after this particular stalking case. A capt steppd down and moved on. A sergeant was later fired for further wrongdoings. And the judge announced his retirement. IMHO, the judge finally realized he had no clue who to believe in criminal cases, the cops or the defendents.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 5th, 2010 | 8:32pm

Whoa! I never said I accept it.

Most communities are spineless and simply won't try to do anything about corruption, conspiracy and perjury when it rears it's ugly head. And communities will not support a good cop who tries to blow the whistle, they mark him/her off as nothing more than a disgruntled employee.

The only justice I really see out here on the streets is when an honest citizen happens to capture a bad cop on video.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 4th, 2010 | 1:34am

Ashley, I don't have any dirty laundry. If I did, I would use some of the monetary damages various cop shoppes had to pay me and send it out to the dry cleaners.

Notice above, and I quote Strom, "What a coincidence.... an officer sees me and makes an accusation I’m following him.” This is the exact same thing a cop shoppe tried to do to me. So I can believe it if this is the evidence that's introduced at trial.

In my entire career spanning almost 3 decades, I never harassed or stalked anybody like certain modern day rookie cops do. As a matter of fact, I only had one complaint filed on me that I can recall. And it involved an allegation of my breaking personal property while repossessing furniture from a person's home. Unbeknown to the complainant, the sheriff himself was with me and knew that I had not damaged anything. The complainant withdrew his complaint after he found out the sheriff was with me.

somethingstinks April 5th, 2010 | 9:39am

2 rules to live by.

1. Never trust a cop.
2. Never trust a cop.

Reality Check April 3rd, 2010 | 6:22pm

Deleted by moderator.

log April 7th, 2010 | 10:44pm

Get a room.

Fuzzy Wuzzy April 6th, 2010 | 12:27am

I HeArTE JADE, I have absolutely no problem with what you are doing, I personally think that it a good thing to see an American citizen actually using their rights instead of cowering to the powers that be. I work with police officers everyday, it's part of what I do, and every single one of them knew from the start that being a police officer was dangerous and yet they still became officers. If they are afraid for their life because one person post their pictures online. If you are in the public, whether a police officer, homeless person, movie star, or CEO of a Fortune 500 company, you are still in the public and have zero expectation of privacy. If you don't like it, then you are free to pursue another line of work, or become a recluse and buy a huge compound and never leave a la Michael Jackson, otherwise, suck it up. I HeArTE JADE, keep doing what your doing, and I hope that after everything is said and done, you are able to take them to the cleaners.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 3rd, 2010 | 7:26pm

quote: "Strom repeatedly pushes the envelope, won’t move on with her life, then wonders why she keeps getting in trouble."

Interesting remark. IMHO, the not moving on with her life includes her not taking the web site down. That's what this is all about.

Pushing the envelope? Maybe. But has she really broken any laws? Or is back door tactics being used to apply certain laws improperly so as to make her actions look illegal to the general public?

I can go down to Arby's, Chipoltes, or any other restaurant where cops get free or discounted food, snap a picture of them, and place it on a web site. There's nothing illegal about this.

I do not recall the state, but a few civilians were videotaping a cop shoppe raid on a junk yard. The cops jumped the fence surrounding the junk yard, arrested the civilians doing the videotaping, and confiscated their video cameras. The charge was obstructing justice. How did they obstruct justice? The judge threw the charges out of court and the cop shoppe ending up paying each of the civilans quite a chunk of taxpayer change.

I would bet my life that if I created a web site tonight devoted to local school Resource officers with images of them sitting around with their feet up on a desk, sitting around playing solitaire on computers, or picking their noses on city and county time.... the cop shoppes would use some sort of back door tactic to convince the public that I was doing something illegal. Their intent would be to make me take the web site down.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 2nd, 2010 | 7:05pm

IMHO, this is nothing more than attempt #2 at forcing Strom to shut her web site down. If she enters into another plea agreement I am sure one of the conditions will be that she not possess or use computers for say, 5 years?

I hate cases like this. She was the greatest thing since radial tires when she was helping the cop shoppe prosecute somebody. Now she is old news and they would probably like to see her move to Montana.

This latest tactic is not a new brainstorm in any cop shoppe circle. Back when I was a Greene County deputy sheriff, and the Albemarle County cop shoppe falsely arrested me for impersonating a Green County deputy sheriff, an Albemarle cop shoppe Lt. and Capt. falsely charged me stalking the original arresting officer after the original charges never went to trial. Some of the testimony was absolutely hilarious. Even the judge tried to cover his face and laughter with his hands during certain portions of testimony. Everybody in the courtroom noticed it. Like when I stopped an extremely drunk driver in Albemarle County and called the Albemarle cop shoppe to send me help. One of the cops said I was there just so I could stalk them. When they made this claim, I guess they had no idea I was the Greene County deputy sheriff who had stopped the drunk driver and CALLED THEM because I was out of my jurisdiction!!! What were they trying to do? Well, IMHO, they were trying to get a conviction on the second false arrest thinking I would therefore have no claim in suing them for the first false arrest. It failed if that was their intent. After the stalking charge was laughed out of court too, I then sued them for BOTH false arrests.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 14th, 2010 | 3:19pm

I found myself easily bored today. So I flipped the page to "I HeArTE JADE" and read around a lot today. And people that really know me realize that I attempt to speak the truth and give credit when due.

Until today, I did not realize that ATF Agent John Stoltz was on the JADE task force. Based on past experiences with John, I feel well qualified to state that he is one of the most honest law enforcement officers I have ever met. ATF and the JADE task force are both very fortunate to have him aboard.

Well, maybe if Law Enforcement didn't do all the horrible things you say they do, GSOE, they wouldn't need special protection.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 7th, 2010 | 8:14pm

Well, if they were posting as "the other question", you won't see the user name anymore. He/she said he/she was going over to C'Vill Weekly.

Whoever it was, I doubt you will be getting a Christmas card from them this year.

No Other Question April 7th, 2010 | 10:38pm

I think "the other question" might be a member of law enFARCEment instead ;)

Ashley April 2nd, 2010 | 11:34pm

THIS WOMAN NEEDS TO GET A LIFE!!!!
Really. While I am struck by what Elisha can do, I am disgusted with what she uses her talents for. She is a smart woman. Yet, she wastes her life and talent to bash cops and tail them all day.. looking for useless info. All I can see on this woman's blog is a bunch of photos of cops pulling people over, arresting people, doing their job. Then, some personal photos, probably ripped from someone's social media page. Police officers are human. They go out for a beer now and again, they go to bbqs, ballgames.. so WHAT!! Honestly, these guys risk their lives for this stinking community every day, trying to get the grime off the streets. Let's make their lives more stressful by following them around with our camera and hiding in bushes. Pretty sad, really.
Elisha Strom is an annoyance, a nuisance and potentially a danger and threat to cops and their families.
I don't care if she got screwed over by an officer. Get over it and MOVE ON. That's what makes someone a stronger and better person.
Karma. He'll get his, and now.... she'll get hers.
Maybe next time we see an officer we THANK THEM for protecting us.. now there's a novel idea.

Area officers may call me a lot of things, but only one has ever called me "Ms. Strom." If you are the person who sent the email, I assume you know why I'd tell you this.

;)

Local April 2nd, 2010 | 11:24pm

To Ms. Strom:

I just wanted to let you know I had nothing to do with this alleged court order violation. What I said in my email, I meant. I have no quarrels with being photographed as I am in the public eye every day and should expect it. My knowledge of your arrest first came from your own announcement.

brady April 2nd, 2010 | 10:38pm

Hey Chris and Gasbag. how do i know that you 2 are flaming liberals? well because you have no respect for authority and defend a woman who constantly harrasses the folks i look up too and rely on for safety and security. 2 opinions there coming from law breakers themselves.

Charles Yoo Farley April 2nd, 2010 | 11:32pm

"Hey Chris and Gasbag. how do i know that you 2 are flaming liberals? well because you have no respect for authority and defend a woman who constantly harrasses the folks i look up too and rely on for safety and security. 2 opinions there coming from law breakers themselves."
Uuuuuuuh, um. Never mind.

well now.... April 2nd, 2010 | 10:11pm

testing 1,2,3...

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 4th, 2010 | 9:59pm

The actual wording in the stalking law is a little more disturbing than you make it sound. It basically says, and I quote, "A person... except a cop... who on more than one occasion engages in conduct directed at another person with the intent to place, or when he knows or reasonably should know that the conduct places that other person in reasonable fear of death, criminal sexual assault, or bodily injury to that other person or to that other person's family or household member is guilty..."

There's far too many questions to be answered. How can a soon to be defendant determine exactly what action might place a person in reasonable fear of death, criminal sexual assault, or bodily injury. Would the exact same act place one person in fear, and yet not another? How does the magistrate when issuing a criminal warrant, or a judge actually hearing a stalking case, determine if a person was in really in fear or just out to serve up a warm dish of vengeance and/or retaliation for whatever reason?

In many cases a magistrate might buy into the program, they're pretty much nothing more than a rubber stamp now, IMHO. But a lot of judges put a lot more thought into it when hearing a stalking case. Now retired Judge Stephen Helvin had to educate the Albemarle Commonwealth Attorney and the entire chain of command at the cop shoppe back in 1997 as to his interpretation of the law and elements required for a conviction. And it just simply ruined their day at the time.

They need to be policed harder in VA in general. My wife was ticketed in VA Beach for having expired tags, when I had paid the bill the week before but had obviously not received the stickers. The officer could have looked up the registration in her little computer but refused, because she could tell my wife was from out of town and not likely to drive down to appeal her case, likely win, and have to pay court costs anyway.

Anyone who automatically sides with the police whenever they arrest someone should reexamine their commitment to fundamental constitutional values like the presumption of innocence.

Reality Check April 11th, 2010 | 1:00pm

Actually no, you'd be wrong about that. Does libel explain the comments you've made that have been deleted?

Jake April 13th, 2010 | 2:03am

Ã¢â?¬Å?beyond the shadow of a reasonable doubt" has never been the legal standard in any criminal court in this country.

It's beyond a reasonable doubt.

HTH.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 6th, 2010 | 9:45am

Fuzzy Wuzzy, all of this hype about the job being so dangerous is a bunch of malarky. Job related deaths per 100,000 in law enforcement isn't even in the Top 10 most dangerous professions in this country. Combined with the fact that so many law enforcement deaths are caused by their own driving habits each year. Even Richard Petty knows when and how to slow down to avoid hitting a tree at 100 miles an hour.

Being an airline pilot, a logger, a deep sea fisherman, a truck driver, a taxi driver, or a construction worker are in the top 10. And amazing enough, in the quest for better pay and benefits, we never hear them whine and moan about their job being so dangerous.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 8th, 2010 | 4:12pm

Matt, I am very familiar with David Codrea and his movement.

And trust me, I know what the term "beyond the shadow of a reasonable doubt" used to mean.

Nowadays it means you were still guilty, but the cops did a poor job investigating the case or the commonwealth did a poor job of presenting the case. :)

Once a person is accused of a crime, they remain guilty for the rest of their life. Look at Butch Morris for example. While a jury found him not guilty of a 20 year old murder, he will still be known as a murderer in cop circles and in the eyes of the public for the rest of his natural life. Once people see something in print or on the TV news, it can't be unseen. Even when a judge tells a jury to disregard the comment they just heard, they can't and don't. It's that simple.

Quote GSOE Once people see something in print or on the TV news, it can’t be unseen.

Yes, indeed.

And media is oft times deliberately disingenuous. I mean, even the opening for this article is intentionally misleading. Ã¢â?¬Å?The woman who spent a month in jail for publishing an undercover police officer’s address”Š” The Hook is well aware JADE members aren’t Ã¢â?¬Å?undercover.” On top of that, by omitting what I was actually charged with, it erroneously implies that publishing an officer’s address is illegal. Way to intimidate the public on behalf of the police!

You ought to be thankful, GSOE; your situation wasn’t used to push any shady pro-Law-Enforcement agenda and you weren’t smeared in coverage. Shoot, you’re still quoted -- and in a positive manner -- as an authority when various cop-related issues arise.

H. L. Mencken had it right: All successful newspapers are ceaselessly querulous and bellicose. They never defend anyone or anything if they can help it; if the job is forced on them, they tackle it by denouncing someone or something else.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 8th, 2010 | 7:11pm

quote: "GSOE; .... you’re still quoted Ã¢â?¬â? and in a positive manner Ã¢â?¬â? as an authority when various cop-related issues arise.

That's cause I no longer have to lie, deny and cover for crooked cops.

I'll never forget the day one of our deputies went home for lunch and forgot he had a female prisoner in the back of the transport van. 45 minutes later, he took her to jail. He even admitted in a memo that he forgot she was in the van (I still have a copy of the memo right here on my desk).

The official sheriff's press release the next day read, "Deputy had a bowel emergency, had to run home for a few minutes."

Back in those days I would have lost my job if I told anybody the truth. I had to lie, deny and cover for the entire department anytime they did something wrong.

IvyMoon April 9th, 2010 | 10:46pm

I see a marriage in the making here. Gasbag and IHearteJade..I now pronounce you husband and wife.

Seriously, you both just need to get a room.

Reality Check April 11th, 2010 | 1:33am

Just noticed above that it says I had a post deleted by moderator on April 3rd, at 6:22pm. Very puzzling considering I posted only once on this thread.

Has the JADE website been taken down? Link provided here won't work right.

I am guessing JADE got sprung. What a bunch of overinflated egos. They strap on very biguns and lace up their very small shoes. it might sounded jaded but nothing to heart.Hell hath no fury like a petermaid with a tickertbook scorned.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 15th, 2010 | 9:56am

Ohh, absolutely. I won't go into details here, but he made it very clear that he was going to do things by the book in an investigation, and he made it very clear that he was not going to conspire with anybody if it was their intention to have him do so.

Former Greene County Sheriff William Morris also announced his decision not to conspire with those who were apparently asking him to do so as well.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 13th, 2010 | 8:16am

That's why I copied the term exactly as Matt intorduced it above. "Beyond the shadow of a doubt" is often mistakenly combined or confused with "beyond a reasonable doubt" by people, so we end up with "beyond the shadow of a reasonable doubt".

Some feel "beyond the shadow of doubt" is an impossible standard of proof in court, while "beyond a reasonable doubt" is more logically accommodating, allowing for the limits of human reason.

Quote GSOE Based on past experiences with John, I feel well qualified to state that he is one of the most honest law enforcement officers I have ever met.

Not once has anything you’ve said ever surprised me. But this? This does surprise me. I am very surprised.

John. Stoltz.

Seriously. Seriously?

the other question April 7th, 2010 | 1:25pm

Why is it that someone with her obvious level of intelligence isn’t out riding around looking for a job instead of what she’s doing. If I was unemployed, had a kid to support and lived with my parents Ã¢â?¬â?? I'd be job hunting not wasting time begging for attention. How absolutely sad and pathetic. The child and parents must be so proud.

Wake the hell up, sweetheart. Millions upon millions of people are out of work, and the number of professionals -- you know, for example, guys like former Albemarle County Officer Caleb Marden -- without a job is only increasing.

Ã¢â?¬Å?Unemployed” just doesn’t have the negative connotations it once did. But you deserve a pat on the head for trying to keep it alive as an insult.

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 7th, 2010 | 3:45pm

I HeArTE JADE, I just read on your web site where so and so cop walks by, smiles and waves to you? I don't know why other people don't see it, but I believe they are leading you on and then stabbing you in the back.

I was talking to a young rookie cop friend last night. I tried to impress upon this young rookie cop not to wrongfully conspire with other cops under any circumstances, not to use the badge and authority in a vindictive manner while seeking revenge, retaliation or payback, and to not lie under oath in a court of law. I assured the young rookie that any and all of this would come home to bite the rookies in the butt when they least expects it.

No Other Question April 7th, 2010 | 3:41pm

At least Elisha knows to use a question mark at the end of a sentence that's supposed to be a question. And she knows how to use proper verb tense and punctuation!

Go back to school and don't worry about her. Worry about yourself. Your peeps must be proud of you, "the other question". I hope you don't help children with homework.

Whether or not you agree with what Elisha does with her time has no bearing on what very well might be a violation of her civil rights under the color of law. We don't live in a communist country, nor do we live in a country where law enforcement should be able to reach into our cameras and home computers to quash our full rights to freedom of expression.

Having the right to travel on public roads should not give law enforcement the right to claim they are being stalked under coincidental circumstances. Law enforcement and the courts should not be able to dictate that any person should have to turn a corner simply because they are traveling behind a law enforcement vehicle or a POV owned by any officer of the law.

I hope she kicks their hind ends with legal paperwork in court.

the other question April 7th, 2010 | 4:17pm

Don't worry about her? Worry about myself? Is that supposed to be a joke? She continuously puts herself in the limelight with her shenanigans and can go around bothering/following officers trying to do their drug-busting jobs to keep drugs off of our streets but we are supposed to leave her alone. That's hilarious. All of this is because they REJECT her. They don’t like her and they don’t think she’s cute or funny or very educated but to some people negative attention is better than none. AND thank goodness we could bring it all right back around to be all about Gasbag. I thought for one brief moment that maybe just maybe we could have an exchange without another life lesson from that guy. Blah, blah, blah. BORING!

Gasbag Self Ordained Expert April 7th, 2010 | 4:40pm

Why read here if you are bored?

Better yet, why even post here if you don't want people discussing or debating YOUR thoughts?

the other question April 7th, 2010 | 4:56pm

Great question Gasbag! I'm moving on to C'ville Weekly where they stay on topic and debate intelligently. Hopefully Ms. Strom will recognize what walking away looks like and try it. It’s ok. If not for herself then perhaps so her family, especially the child, won’t have to talk to her through plexi-glass on an icky phone.